


Everything I Need I Get From You (Giving Back Is All I Want To Do).

by MOGICORE



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Caregiver Kim Hongjoong, Caregiver Park Seonghwa, Don't mind me pushing my Fake Hyung Jongho agenda, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Everyone is kind of mean to Mingi but they make up for it in the end, Everyone is so happy to take care of him and he doesn't even realize it bc he's a big dumb baby, Fluff, Mild Angst, Mingi's just an insecure little baby, Multi, Song Mingi-centric, i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:35:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24766297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MOGICORE/pseuds/MOGICORE
Summary: “I want to be the one who takes care of you guys, but I'm sorry that you guys are the ones always taking care of me.” Mingi had confessed during Treasure Film.He doesn't feel like he'd been doing a very good job of that. In fact, it seemed like his members had to take even more care of him now than they had then.
Relationships: Choi Jongho/Choi San/Jeong Yunho/Jung Wooyoung/Kang Yeosang/Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa/Song Mingi, Song Mingi/Everyone
Comments: 23
Kudos: 199





	Everything I Need I Get From You (Giving Back Is All I Want To Do).

Mingi sobs weakly, blanket stuffed between his teeth to muffle his cries. He didn't want the other members to hear him. He didn't want them to be upset with him again. He had already taken up so much of their time and caused enough problems.

He presses his tear-stained face into his pillow and nearly chokes on his own spit because he can't swallow with his nose blocked. Practice had been hard that day. For some reason, he couldn't keep up with the others even though he'd done the choreographies a hundred times before. He slipped and fell on his ass, accidentally tripped Yeosang (twice!), smacked Wooyoung in the arm once and then in the face. Not to mention him just messing up the choreography in general by blanking out because he couldn't remember or he didn't get into his position in time. Everyone had been pissed at him because every time he messed up, Hongjoong made them all start from the top.

Some of them were better at hiding it than others. Yunho tried to look like he wasn't upset but Mingi had known him long enough to tell how mad he was just by the way he carried himself. Yeosang and Wooyoung were hardly subtle about their glares and, naturally, Yeosang was vocal about his mistakes, tearing into him every time he fucked up. No one, not even Jongho, who was usually incredibly protective of him, stood up for him.

San tried to keep everyone's spirits up and encourage Mingi but even he couldn't keep that facade up when he was tired. Jongho was abnormally quiet but clenched his fists every time Mingi messed up; and after a while, he just started moving to his starting position the moment Mingi made a mistake because he knew Hongjoong was going to make them start all over.

Seonghwa sent Mingi encouraging smiles, tried to help him, "Just relax, Mingi.", and did his best to keep the others civil. He still smiled painfully and closed his eyes for several seconds too long though every time Hongjoong yelled 'again!'.

Hongjoong tried not to show how pissed he was but all of them couldn't help but flinch at his harsh, frustrated tone and exasperated growls. He'd grown impatient. Mingi had been so terrified of the leader and he'd silently had an anxiety attack, heart hammering against his ribs and throat tight and choked. Tears welled up in his eyes but he blinked them away because he didn't want to be yelled at for crying. He'd been terrified that he was just going to start screaming at him in front of everyone. ' _For fuck's sake, Mingi, can't you do anything right!?_ ' but he hadn't. He'd just sighed deeply, disappointedly, and he'd looked at Mingi like he'd disgraced his entire family (in a way, Mingi felt he had).

Wooyoung, San, and Yeosang kept sharing looks that Mingi pretended he couldn't see. It hurt so fucking badly.

Eventually, Hongjoong said they should just go home and that maybe some rest would do them all some good. "Maybe tomorrow we'll perform better," but as he said it, they all looked at Mingi like they all wanted him to know that he was a colossal fuck up. He felt humiliated and his cheeks burned.

When they got back to the dorm, Mingi went straight to the room he shared with San and Jongho. Peeling off his sweatpants, he'd climbed into bed and pulled the blankets over his shoulders, not caring that he was drenched in sweat. Something else for Seonghwa to be mad about, he thought.

He had listened as everyone had their showers and then eaten dinner together, talking and laughing like he didn't even exist. No one came in to see if he was hungry or even to check if he was asleep. Jongho and San didn't come to sleep in their beds and neither Seonghwa nor Hongjoong had come to tell him goodnight and give him kisses. No one opened the door and turned on the hall light.

That was how Mingi found himself, lying in a pitch-black room at nearly 2:30 in the morning, sobbing his eyes out until his lips were chewed raw and his eyes red and puffy; his eyelashes clung together and even if the light was on, he wasn't sure he'd be able to see because of it. The feeling of his blanket against his teeth is uncomfortable and it tastes kind of funny because Yeosang had spilled tomato juice on it a few days ago but, at the moment, it was the only thing that provided a small amount of comfort to him. He'd much rather suck on his thumb or maybe climb into bed with San to suck on his fingers instead, feel the older run his fingers across his tongue, petting gently like it was a kitten.

Just the thought of San makes him sob harder and he does his best to bury his face farther into his pillow. Mingi couldn't help but feel like a complete and utter fuck up, couldn't help but feel like he had no place in the group, and couldn't help but feel like he didn't deserve to be here. There was no reason to have him in the group and he knew it. Hongjoong, Seonghwa, and Jongho could all rap, everyone but him could sing, and they were all amazing dancers. San was, arguably, after Yunho, the best dancer Mingi had ever seen. San was more deserving of the position of main dancer than he was; and it wasn't just that he couldn't even get simple choreographies that he'd done a million times before right, it was also the fact that he was a burden to everyone even outside of the studio and practice room.

Mingi thought back to the weekend before when he tried to help Seonghwa with the laundry, how he'd made a complete fucking mess of that, and how he'd broken a cup because he couldn't listen when Seonghwa had told him to stop throwing his bouncy ball in the house. That Sunday had only ended in him having a sore bottom and Seonghwa bathing him, putting him in one of Yunho's sweaters, and forcing him to sit on the couch and watch TV while he cleaned. Mingi had felt so horrible that he couldn't even help his hyung clean up the home they all shared. He'd cried at least three pounds off that night and San had forgone sleep just to hold him, comfort him, until he'd stopped, which hadn't been until almost four and a half hours later. After San went to sleep, he'd gone to the bathroom and cried again because now San was going to be tired in the morning for staying up because of him.

And when Mingi was sick the previous month, Hongjoong set him up on the couch in the living room. Wooyoung helped Seonghwa make him jook and Yunho had gone all the way to the store just to buy fresh yuja and make him yuja cha because Yunho knew that it always made Mingi feel better when he was sick. Jongho helped him take a bath that morning and then let him wear one of his sweaters, the one Mingi always wanted to wear because it smelled like him, and no one had even said anything when he didn't wear any pants. San had built him a nest on the couch and bundled him up so he was warm (he even let Mingi sleep with Shiber). Everyone had taken care of him. He'd cried then too, but had told them it was just because he felt so bad. It was a half-truth and a half-lie; Mingi did feel bad but not because he was sick.

Now, face buried in his pillow, blanket stuffed between his teeth, in a very dark room where there were no doubt monsters slowly advancing on him, Mingi feels sick again. He struggles to think of a time when he'd cared for any of his members and he can't. No matter how hard he tries, he can't. His mind feels fuzzy as if it's been stuffed with wet cotton balls, and he can hardly focus on searching his memories when he can't even breathe properly. Sleep is a long time coming.

It's five-thirty in the morning when Jongho comes into the room, eyes bleary and hair a mess. "Mingi, Hongjoong-hyung said to get up, we have to go." Mingi's curled on his side, facing the wall, still very much wide awake. He'd managed to nab thirty minutes of sleep from the sandman, but had woken up after a nightmare involving creatures hiding in the darkness of his room and promptly begun to cry again because he was scared and alone and couldn't even go get someone because they were mad at him.

"I'm already up," he mumbles, voice incredibly hoarse and rough from all the crying he'd done. He feels exhausted and knows he's probably dehydrated too. Jongho grabs some clothes and leaves and San comes in a few minutes later. He doesn't say anything to Mingi and somehow, that's worse than if he'd made a rude comment. Despite knowing he needed to get up, he does not. His mind is feeling fuzzy again, not in a bad way, not in a good way, it's just there, hovering, waiting. He doesn't know what for. 

The other members are talking loudly outside the bedroom, fighting over who was going to sit where in the car, what they wanted to eat for lunch, and "For fuck's sake, tell Yeosang and Seonghwa to hurry up in the shower!". Mingi drowns it out and shuffles closer to the wall, pressing his forehead against the cool surface. The fuzziness gets stronger and Mingi sighs through his nose, feels hot air puff against his fingers and wonders, briefly, when his thumb had found its way into his mouth. At last, his eyes flutter shut and he falls asleep.

"Mingi. Mingi, wake up! We're going to be late, you dumb baby!" 

"Wooyoung, yelling is only going to scare him!"

"You weren't thinking about that yesterday, Yeosang!" 

Mingi blinks his eyes a few times and makes a soft gurgling sound. He can hear people talking but can't understand a word of what they're saying other than what sounded like his name and 'dumb baby'. His thumb falls from his mouth with a wet pop and he rolls over, pressing his face into his blanket with a sleepy sigh.

"Nooo," Wooyoung pats at Mingi's shoulder, "You have to get up, Mingi! We're gonna be late to practice and Hongjoong-hyung is already upset because you're taking forever!" Mingi finds himself face to face with an agitated Wooyoung when he manages to crack his eyes open again. Yeosang's leaning over Wooyoung's shoulder, looking equally agitated. Mingi's mind registers that they're upset and his lower lip trembles. He feels afraid and small, very small, a kind of small he hadn't felt since he was in high school when he— his brain cuts off, the bit of himself clinging onto being a functioning adult telling him that that is not what's happening. "Mingi—"

He bursts into tears and finds himself shoving his face into a bundle of blankets. 

Naturally, Wooyoung called for the two eldest members first. "Seonghwa-hyung! Hongjoong-hyung! There's something wrong with Mingi!" 

Seonghwa was a stolid person, incredibly caring, perceptive, empathetic and he could make the members behave with just his words most of the time; Yunho liked to say he was like a mother from a K-Drama and, well, it wasn't like Seonghwa couldn't say that it wasn't true. Most would assume Seonghwa loathed the role of being the 'mother' of the group since he was a man, and while it did get taxing at times (because when was motherhood not?), he thoroughly enjoyed it. Their mothers were some of the most important people in their lives so it meant a lot to Seonghwa that his members trusted and loved him enough to bestow the title upon him, that they felt safe enough to do so. 

Hongjoong was caring and empathetic too, but in the way fathers usually were; he was stern and he usually wasn't overly affectionate and sometimes it seemed like he was being unnecessarily unfair. Even so, the members had learned to trust his judgment, learned to trust that he knew best. Even when he got upset, he could never stay that way for long and he wasn't one to drag out their punishments for as long as possible. They all appreciated that, especially the members who tended to get into trouble more than others. And no matter how many hours, sometimes days, he spent in the studio working and no matter how exhausted he was when he finally came home, Hongjoong was always happy to muster up what little strength he had left to play with them, take the load of Seonghwa's shoulders for a while, and take care of their kids. He made for a wonderful leader and an equally wonderful appa.

It's because of that that they're both more concerned about their Mingi than getting to practice on time. "Ah, what did you two do?" Hongjoong rushed into the room, Seonghwa right on his tail, eyebrows furrowed in worry. "I told you to wake him up, not traumatize him!"

Seonghwa dropped himself onto Mingi's bunk, prying him away from his blankets before he suffocated himself. "But we didn't do anything!" Yeosang protested, "He just— we woke him up but then he tried to go back to sleep so Wooyoung told him that he had to get up, and then he just started crying!"

Hongjoong squints at them hard, "Go wait in the living room. Tell Yunho to call the manager and tell him that I said we're taking the day off." Both boys hesitate so he adds, "Now." Mingi bawls harder at his words and struggles to free himself from Seonghwa's arms. Part of him wants so desperately to give in, to just be small again and the other half is screaming at him because he's doing it again — making his members worry, making them take care of him — and why can't he just take care of himself? Why can't he just be normal?

"Mingi, Mingi, my precious little flower.. you need to calm down, you're going to hurt yourself." One of Hongjoong's arms wrap around him, the other one lifting so he can press a small hand to Mingi's cheek. Just behind him, Seonghwa eases him back onto the bed, into his lap, and wraps his arms around his midsection. "Can you hear me, flower? I'm right here. We're both right here. You're okay."

That other half, the half that's screaming, tells him that he needs to get it together, tell his hyungs that he's fine, he's overreacting and being stupid. That half is steadily losing the battle with Hongjoong's gentle words and Seonghwa's careful but firm hold on him, grounding him, reminding him that he's here. He's okay. They won't leave him. Mingi lets out a deep, shaky breath and sniffles hard, the back of his hand rubbing against his nose violently. "M-Minnie's sorry."

"Babylove, there's no reason to be sorry," Seonghwa's breath tickles his ear and Mingi shivers. "You're alright, honey, you're alright." Hongjoong wipes his tears away with the sleeves of his sweater and smiles at him, large and full of all those teeth he has. Mingi gives him a watery smile that looks like Seonghwa's in that it looks like he's in pain. Hongjoong doesn't mind. 

They sit in silence for a few minutes so Mingi can calm down completely. Hongjoong leaves for just a moment to get tissues and some wet wipes from Seonghwa's bag, and when he comes back, he helps Mingi blow his nose and wipes his face carefully. Seonghwa pets his head and presses dozens of kisses to his scalp. 

When he feels better, the fuzziness in his head now an almost pleasant haze, Seonghwa maneuvers his pliant limbs until he's facing him, legs on either side of his hips. Hongjoong sits next to Seonghwa, presses a hand against the small of his back. "Do you feel like using your words right now?" 

Mingi purses his lips and shakes his head slowly but speaks anyway, "Appa.. mad at.. appa mad at Mingi." He says softly, lifting a hand to rub his thumb against his lower lip, "Everyone mad at Mingi."

"What do you mean? No one is mad at you, flower." Hongjoong's hand slides up to hold the back of his neck and squeeze lightly.

The younger bristles at the words and wails softly. He bounces in Seonghwa's lap, leaning forward to press his face into the man's neck. "Yesterday." He croaked and Seonghwa stops himself from cringing at the wetness soaking his neck because Mingi's so much more important than that. 

Seonghwa shoots Hongjoong a look that says, ' _I told you that we were being harsh!_ ', and Hongjoong returns that look with one of his own that says, ' _You told us off enough last night, let's not do this again?_ '. Seonghwa squints at him but relents, "Mingi, if you can, if you want to, could you look at us?"

He does want to but every part of him, big and small, is still terrified. He's terrified that when he does look up that he's only going to see their upset faces, eyes filled with disappointment, and pretty lips turned in frowns. "No."

"Okay. That's okay. You don't have to but we do need you to listen to us. Can you do that?" Mingi forces himself to nod. Hongjoong presses his hand against his neck and pushes him into Seonghwa's shoulder and he appreciates that, sucking the collar of the older man's shirt into his mouth. Both he and Seonghwa know something is up with Mingi, something more than just his distress over yesterday's events. They'd both been suspecting it for a while, even before the whole 'eomma/appa' thing came into play a few months ago.

Seonghwa, with his infinite knowledge and motherly instincts, had noticed it first; not that Mingi was acting childish (because he usually did) but that he went nonverbal at times and would only make noises or use his hands to get what he wanted from the other members, that he'd suck on his thumb or San's (sometimes Jongho's) fingers. He seemed spacey sometimes and fascinated by every little thing. When he got like that, he clung to whoever was closest and sleep, maybe watch TV. If anyone pointed it out, that all went away, though, and his face would go pink and he'd run off to his room or say he was going to the studio. Seonghwa had noticed it more and more until the week before when Mingi had broken his cup and it'd sort of hit him all at once that Mingi was small sometimes and that maybe he was afraid to be.

Hongjoong noticed it a little later than Seonghwa but had been the one to put a name to what it was because he was intelligent like that, knew how to find things when he needed to. Perhaps he'd noticed it when they were trainees but had forgotten about it, he'd never know, but it hadn't taken him long to notice that Mingi liked when he was told that he was a good boy for doing even the simplest of tasks or that he tended to run at the thought of handling adult responsibilities and trusted Hongjoong and Seonghwa to take care of it instead. If that hadn't been enough to tip him off, then the time when Yeosang had playfully asked Mingi how old he was when the younger had asked if they could watch Trolls at the movie theatre and Mingi had looked at him, eyes all big and innocent, and replied with, "Three, Sangie.", definitely was. About a month ago, Hongjoong had brought it up to Seonghwa while they were in bed, told him that one day, Mingi was going to slip and regress. It was unavoidable.

So both Seonghwa and Hongjoong knew exactly what this was. How to handle it? That was another question. It was mostly a first for them.

"I know yesterday was hard, especially for you, and appa is so sorry for the way he treated you. I was frustrated but I shouldn't have taken it out on you because you always try your hardest, baby. I shouldn't have grown impatient with you. I should have helped you and I didn't and appa is so sorry for that." Hongjoong sounds like he does whenever he tells them that he loves them or when he tells ATINY he loves them; he sounds sincere. Mingi peeks out at him through his lashes and is met with his gentle smile. 

"Mean it?"

Hongjoong grins, "I've never meant anything more than I mean this, Gigi." 

The younger rapper squirms in Seonghwa's arms and falls towards him, arms slinging around his neck. "S'okay." A gentle squeeze from Seonghwa prompts Mingi to quickly change that to, "I 'cept.. appa's 'pology."

"Thank you. Appa's very happy. Eomma wants to apologize too and then we can go talk to your brothers, okay? I'm sure that they're just as sorry as eomma and appa are." Hesitantly, Mingi lets go of Hongjoong and scrunches his nose up. "It's okay, darling, they're not mad. I promise you they aren't."

"Appa make sure?" And Mingi looks so sad with his eyes all big and watery like that and Hongjoong can't say no.

"Of course. Appa will send the tickle monster to visit so they can't be mad anymore if he has to."

When Hongjoong enters the living room, Yeosang's curled into Jongho's side, clinging to one of his arms and he looks like he's been crying. Wooyoung's sandwiched himself between Yunho and San and is chewing anxiously at his sweater. Jongho looks like he wants to punch someone and Yunho looks like he's just killed a puppy. He can't quite tell with San since he's got his face buried in Wooyoung's shoulder. "I need to talk with you all before Seonghwa brings Mingi out."

"Is Mingi okay?"

"We really didn't mean to make him cry, hyung!"

"Mingi's upset about yesterday, isn't he? We fucked up bad, didn't we?"

"Are you going to spank us?"

"Do I have to punch everyone and myself?"

The questions are all asked sort of at once and sort of one after another and it makes Hongjoong's mind spin a little. "Quiet! Yes, Mingi's okay. He's just.. in a vulnerable state right now. I know you didn't mean to make him cry, Yeosang. He's upset about yesterday and yes, we fucked up, but not so bad that it can't be fixed. No, Woo, I'm not going to spank you, and no, you don't have to punch everyone and yourself, Jongho, but thank you for the offer." With all their questions answered, everyone seems to calm down a little. "But you're all going to have to apologize. We hurt him yesterday and right now, he's worried that you're still upset with him."

Yeosang's lips purse and he starts crying again, head returning to Wooyoung's neck. "Sangie, you don't need to cry, darling. Mingi's going to be okay." Hongjoong crouches in front of the couch and rests his hands on Yeosang's thighs.

"But I hurt him, appa!" And, oh god, Hongjoong really should have seen this coming ( _how could he not have seen this coming_?) and it's far too late to even address it now because he can hear the bedroom door opening and two sets of footsteps coming their way. 

Yeosang's the first to jump from his seat and run to Mingi, engulfing the other in a tight hug that forces him onto his tip-toes just so he can nuzzle into his neck, "Sorry, sorry, sorry. Sangie's sorry." He repeats, tears soaking into Mingi's shirt. Yeosang stumbles back a little, and Mingi just clings, bawling hard into his neck as the older man lowers them onto the couch.

Yunho promptly steals him away and squeezes so tight Mingi's lungs feel like they might burst. "Mingi, 'm sorry I should've stood up for you. I should've helped you when I saw you were having trouble. M'sorry, really sorry." He whimpers like a kicked puppy and Mingi nips at his mochi cheeks so he knows he's forgiven.

Everyone apologizes one by one, each hugging and kissing Mingi until he feels sufficiently loved and so very tiny. Seonghwa and Hongjoong sneak off; Seonghwa to run Mingi a bath because he knows he hadn't showered, and Hongjoong to get water for everyone because he wasn't going to have dehydrated children.

"Don't cry, don't cry," Mingi whispers into San's neck, "Forgive you. Forgive everyone. No crying now. No more. Crying.. make Mingi heart hurt."

Wooyoung sobs (dramatically), "You're too good for us, Minnie! I love you. love you so, so much!" and Mingi giggles at his melodramatics.

"Alright, alright. Let's give Mingi a little space now, okay?" Hongjoong hands them each a water bottle, "Drink then we have something else to talk about. Something important."

"Bad important?" Jongho looks a little anxious.

Seonghwa wanders in from the bathroom, towel tossed over his shoulder, and holds out a hand, "Babylove," Mingi looks up immediately and wiggles free from Yeosang's arms to take his hyung's hand. "I'm going to give Mingi a bath. You can handle the, uh, the talk?"

"I've got it, Hwa. Have a little faith. You didn't marry me for nothing." Hongjoong's joking but Seonghwa smiles anyway, rows of dazzling pearly whites on display.

With the subject of the conversation gone, Hongjoong sits down in his chair (and doesn't scold Yunho for scrambling up into his lap, because technically, he isn't sitting in his chair), and sighs, "Mingi's an age regressor. He's.. he's regressed right now. He's regressed before too, I think, but only a little. Yesterday stressed him out a lot so he slipped."

Jongho tilts his head back, guzzling the last of his water before speaking, "But that's.. that's okay, right? It's not a bad thing? To be that?" 

"And does that mean he's like a little kid? Like a baby, I mean?" Wooyoung chews at his fingers.

The leader nods, "No, it's not a bad thing, Jjongie and it's okay. As for your question, I don't know. we'll just have to see. He might be younger or older or maybe in between sometimes. Seonghwa and I need to know you're going to accept that part of him."

He's met with a chorus of, "Of course we will, Hyung!" and one, "Duh, he's already our baby, dipshit— I mean, Hyung!" from Wooyoung.

"And... Seonghwa and I also want you to know," he gives them a careful look and runs his fingers up and down Yunho's spine, thinking of how to word it. "We want you to know that if this — age regression — is something you want to try, that that's okay and to tell us if you do. It doesn't have to be now or even tomorrow, it could be in a year or two, but you need to tell us. Understand?"

"Yes, hyung!"

Yunho presses his face into Hongjoong's shoulder and curls up as tiny as he can. Hongjoong smiles and holds his free arm out, "C'mere.", and his dongsaengs clamber onto his chair, pressing as close as they can get. "I love you all so, so much."

* * *

"Hyung, I'm not... I'm not that anymore," Mingi tells Seonghwa quietly with an edge of disgust in his voice, — because how could he have done that in front of everyone? — shoulders hunched up as the oldest ran a washcloth over his skin.

Seonghwa raises an eyebrow and his lips press into a thin line. "I want to take care of you, Mingi. Regressed or not." The word makes Mingi flinch and that tells Seonghwa everything he needs to know; tells Seonghwa that Mingi had been hiding this because he thought it was wrong.

The younger runs his hands across his wet thighs and inhales shakily. "I don't want you to." He blurts. 

"Don't lie to me."

Mingi ignores him. "I'm supposed to take care of you a-and everyone else.. I told you I wanted to take more care of you because you guys are always taking care of me when you shouldn't have to."

Seonghwa forces himself to keep a straight, but kind face because the last thing he wants to do is make Mingi think he's mad at him. "Mingi, I like taking care of you. I love taking care of all of you." He scrubs at Mingi arms lightly, moving him around as needed. "Taking care of you takes care of me too. It makes me feel needed. And Mingi, for the longest time, I didn't feel like any of you needed me. I didn't feel like I should be in the group, be here with you all."

His words remind Mingi of the thoughts he'd had that morning. "Hyung, we do need you," he says wetly, "we love you."

"I know," Seonghwa smiles and leans forward to kiss his forehead and then his lips. "I know. I know because you let me take care of you. I don't care how big or small you are, how big or small any of you are, I like taking care of you and that will never change."

Mingi whines. "But what if you need to be taken care of?"

"Then I'll let you know." He replies easily. "Hongjoong takes good care of me when I need him to. All of you take good care of me and each other too."

"I don't take care of anyone. I never do." Mingi leans against the edge of the tub while Seonghwa uncaps the shampoo and drizzles some into his hand.

"Now where'd you get an idea like that? You help me fold laundry and do the dishes and you always give me plenty of hugs and laughter. You take Hongjoong his meals and drag him out of the studio when he stays for too long. You helped Yeosang fix his drone when it broke and San always goes to you first when he starts to feel insecure because he knows you can help. You help Jongho get to sleep and let him take care of you when he misses his siblings. You always have Wooyoung's favourite candies and make time to go with him to see his mom when you can because you know he likes to have one of us with him. You take care of all of us, Mingi, in your own special way and just because you don't take care of us the way Hongjoong and I take care of you, or the way you think a hyung should, doesn't mean you don't."

Seonghwa scratches at his scalp lightly, working the shampoo into a lather that makes his scalp tingle pleasantly. "I... I didn't think about that.." And Seonghwa hums. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. For that or for being little," And damn Seonghwa's perceptiveness, how had he known? "You're my baby. You always have been and this only means that we get to take care of each other in a new way. Okay?"

Mingi nods slowly and sniffles once, twice, before he starts to cry again. 

"Aish, you're gonna cry off every pound you have, baby." The older man sighs, rinsing the suds from his hair carefully. He forgoes conditioner to get him out of the tub and wrapped up in a big, fluffy towel. "No more tears, you're hurting hyung's heart."

"Hyung?" Mingi's voice cracks and rises an octave, "Can I be little? Please?"

There's a soft but sharp inhale and Seonghwa takes his dongsaeng's cheeks in hand, lifts his head so he can look into his eyes, "You don't need to ask. I'll be right here. We all will, baby.

Seonghwa enters the living room with a freshly washed Mingi on his hip, damp red hair fluffy as ever. The younger's wearing one of Wooyoung's sweaters, which fits but only just, and no pants because ' _don't wanna, eomma!_ '. 

Yeosang squeaks and holds his arms up, making aggressive grabby hands for his dongsaeng. "Mingi, Mingi! Eomma, give here! Want m'baby!" Mingi squeals back and nearly falls out of Seonghwa's arms as the older hands him over with a fond laugh. He curls into Yeosang's lap and rests his head against his shoulder, eyes squeezing shut.

"It went well, then?" Seonghwa hums, dropping himself into Hongjoong's lap. Hongjoong's arms slide around his waist and squeeze.

"Extremely." The two watch their dongsaengs quietly. Yeosang won't let go of Mingi and keeps kissing his cheeks and nose. San, Wooyoung, and Yunho keep pinching Mingi's cheeks, touching his thighs, or making silly faces to try and make him laugh. Jongho observes them from the couch with the fattest big brother energy if Hongjoong had ever seen it, softly chiding them, "Be careful with the baby." and "You have to be gentle, guys. He's just a baby." Eventually, Jongho takes Mingi away and cradles him in his lap because, "If I can't trust you to be gentle, you aren't going to hold him at all."

"Hey, hyungs?" Jongho asks suddenly, looking at them with one of his big, gummy smiles. "Does this mean I'm a hyung now?"

Seonghwa and Hongjoong snort. "I suppose it does, Jjongie," Seonghwa decides.

Jongho does his best to relay his joy at the revelation with Mingi in his arms, "Yes! You hear that Wooyoungie? Mingi's the new maknae and I'm taking his place as the oldest of the maknae line. You know what that means? I'm your hyung now!"

"Jjongie!"

"Ah, ah— that's Jjongie- _hyung_ to you, dongsaeng."

Seonghwa doesn't have the heart to tell him that that's not really what he meant. 


End file.
